Handel House Museum May - August 2014

May – August 2014 Music, Events & Exhibitions

Hanover Rules! www.handelhouse.org

Director’s welcome This season we celebrate the 300th anniversary of the Hanoverian succession and the start of the Georgian era. The Elector of Hanover appointed Handel as his Kapellmeister in 1710 and continued his support of Handel after he succeeded to the throne of England in 1714 as King George I. Handel benefited immensely from the patronage of both George I and George II and he was at the heart of the artistic brilliance of the Georgian era. Over the coming months we will explore Handel’s Royal music. Music for the Royal Fireworks and the Water Music immediately come to mind but Handel composed much more for his royal patrons and this is reflected in our Hanover Rules! season. Events range from the annual come sing event at which Zadok the Priest will be performed (page 10) to the more intimate music he wrote for his students, the children of King George II, to the royal roles in his many operas.

We also mark another anniversary: 300 years of singer Susannah Cibber’s birth.

The exhibition will open on the 26 February and we have included more weekend talks and special events to commemorate this fascinating character.

See opposite for our picks of the season.

Sarah Bardwell, Handel House Director

Portrait of Sarah Bardwell by Phillip Reed.

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Season Highlights ROYAL MUSIC FOR A FAMILY OCCASION

ROYAL HANDEL

THE ROYAL FAVOURITE

Flautotonic return for a family friendly and interactive concert at Handel House on 4 May. Now is your chance to create your very own version of Water Music! Page 4

This concert on 12 June by the Denner Ensemble will be a chance to hear music that Handel wrote for wind instruments including his personal favourite the oboe.

Page 7

Harpsichordist Jane Chapman joins forces with flautist Yu-Wei Hu to celebrate Handel’s wide range of works including those written and dedicated to the Royal family. Page 10

HANDEL HOUSE SINGERS

RNIB YOUNG COMPOSERS

BOWING BEFORE THE KING

Join us for a day of singing Handel’s Coronation Anthem Zadok the Priest to celebrate 300 years of the Hanoverian Succession. The day will be led by baroque specialist and Handel House Trustee Laurence Cummings. Page 10

This marks the culmination of our annual Summer School for young composers who are blind or partially sighted. With only a few days to write a new piece you will be amazed at the results! Page 11

String duo Due Corde will explore Handel’s collaboration with violinists on 7 August. Their concert will include a sonata written by Geminiani for a Royal performance in 1715. Page 12

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May 2014

Tickets: £9, £5 students unless otherwise stated

Booking line: 020 7399 1953

THE ROYAL RECORDER Thursday 1 May, 6.30-7.30pm

MUSIC FOR THE HOUSE OF HANOVER Thursday 8 May, 6.30-7.30pm

Hanover Square, just a few hundred yards from Handel’s residence in Brook Street, is the inspiration for this recital with Hanoverian royal connections.

The four sonatas by Handel, Leclair, Giuseppe Sammartini and CPE Bach bring together colourful national styles and mark the progression from the high baroque to the galante and early classical. Performed by James Risdon (recorder) and Trevor Hughes (harpsichord).

Duo Follia perform music by composers associated with three successive Hanoverian monarchs. Handel and Geminiani composed and performed for George I and George II. Abel and JC Bach were both chamber musicians to Queen Charlotte, consort to George III. The programme also includes a harpsichord suite composed for Princess Louisa, daughter of George II. Duo Follia are Diane Moore (baroque violin) and Yeo Yat-Soon (harpsichord).

BHS RECITAL: CIRCÉ AND THE PEACOCK Tuesday 13 May, 6.30-7.30pm Iris Pucciarelli (harpsichord) performs a programme immersed in the D minor tonality, defined by Marc Antoine Charpentier as ‘grave et dévot’. Sumptuous baroque music is revealed on a musical journey through JS Bach, Jean-Henry d’Anglebert, François Couperin and Antonio Soler.

ROYAL MUSIC FOR A FAMILY OCCASION Sunday 4 May, 2-3pm Join Flautotonic for an engaging and interactive family concert exploring the sound world of Handel’s London and music written for royalty. You and your family will travel up the Thames accompanied by Handel’s Water Music and together recreate the atmosphere of Georgian London. Flautatonic are Lauren Brant (recorder), David Beaney (recorder, baroque flute) and Claire Williams (harpsichord).

Tickets: £12, £6 children

CIACONNA Thursday 15 May, 6.30-7.30pm Eloisa-Fleur Thom (violin) will explore the early solo violin repertoire, opening with Biber’s Guardian Angel Passacaglia from the Mystery Sonatas, considered the most outstanding work of its kind before JS Bach’s Ciaconna. These works are joined with a Suite by Westhoff, a composer who inspired Bach’s Sonatas and Partitas for solo violin.

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May 2014

Tickets: £9, £5 students unless otherwise stated

Booking line: 020 7399 1953

HEIMWEH IN THE HOUSE OF HANOVER: WIND MUSIC FOR THE HOMESICK GERMAN Thursday 22 May, 6.30-7.30pm Homesickness prompted George I’s infamously frequent trips to his native Germany, but Handel had no such inclination. Luckily, Telemann was not one to fall out of touch; he kept up with his old school friend Fasch, his godson CPE Bach, and traded letters with Handel throughout his life.

Listen to rarely-performed music for wind duo to soothe the heart of any homesick Hanoverian.

Ensemble Tempus Fugit are Oonagh Lee (recorder, oboe), Jakab Kauffmann (bassoon), Alex McCartney (baroque guitar) and Katie De La Matter (harpsichord).

BHS WEEKEND RECITAL: JOHANN CASPAR FERDINAND FISCHER Saturday 24 May, 2-3.30pm By popular demand, harpsichordists Tom Foster and Pawel Siwczak return for another afternoon of keyboard music by Johann Caspar Ferdinand Fischer (1656-1746). An important influence and forerunner of Bach and his generation, Fischer is one of several German composers of the period to be strongly influenced by Lully. The event will feature suites and preludes and fugues from Ariadne Musica, Musicalisches Blumen-Büschlein and Musikalischer Parnassus.

Tickets: £12, £6 students

COMPOSER-IN-RESIDENCE: DUETS Thursday 29 May, 6.30-7.30pm Bass viol specialist Liam Byrne and Handel House Composer-inResidence Cevanne HorrocksHopayian (voice, harp) perform together at Handel House. Both are inspired by composers of past and present, West and East, who moved between courtly and popular cultures (Handel included). Be transported through ancient and modern music with compelling narratives.

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June 2014

Tickets: £9, £5 students unless otherwise stated

Booking line: 020 7399 1953

HANDEL AND THE HANOVERIANS Thursday 5 June, 6.30-7.30pm Handel’s life and career were both entwined with the Hanoverian dynasty. As well as teaching the younger Hanoverians, he would add the pomp to their very public events: coronations, weddings and the spectacular Royal Fireworks all benefitted from Handel’s deft touch. Performed

by The Burney Players who are Ian Wilson (recorders), Tuomo Suni (violin), Natasha Kraemer (cello) and Kasia TomczakFeltrin (harpsichord).

Kasia Tomczak-Feltrin

BHS RECITAL: OLD AND NEW, TRIED AND TRUE Tuesday 10 June, 6.30-7.30pm Harpsichordist Elaine Funaro performs two sonatas by the Italian composer Giovanni Benedetto Platti, a toccata by Tarquinio Merula and pieces from For Children Suite by Béla Bartók interspersed with three contemporary compositions, each of which use these older pieces as basis for re-composition to give them a contemporary twist.

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June 2014

Tickets: £9, £5 students unless otherwise stated

Booking line: 020 7399 1953

ROYAL HANDEL Thursday 12 June, 6.30-7.30pm

HANDEL AND THE BURLINGTON CIRCLE Thursday 26 June, 6.30-7.30pm

The Denner Ensemble explore the wonderful chamber music for winds by Handel. The programme will include sonatas, the ‘Oxford’ Water music; keyboard music for a Princess as well as trios by Telemann and an imposter cashing in on Handel’s fame. The Denner Ensemble are Mark Baigent (baroque oboe), Rebecca Prosser (recorder), Nathaniel Harrison (baroque bassoon) and Karen Glen (harpsichord).

The social network provided to Handel during his lodging with Lord Burlington included writers, rivals, patrons and royalty. Handel dedicated Teseo and Amadigi to Burlington and through a Burlington House regular, Dr Arbuthnot physician to Queen Anne, wrote the Birthday Ode. Baroque Encounter perform and are Glenn Kesby (countertenor), Lauren Brant (recorder), David Beany (recorder, baroque flute) and Claire Williams (harpsichord).

ACIS & GALATEA: BACK WHERE IT BEGAN Saturday 21 June 2014, 6pm See page 14 for more information

DUETS FOR THE DUCHESS Thursday 19 June, 6.30-7.30pm This concert is a programme of secular duet cantatas by Bononcini who composed for the Royal Academy of Music in London during the 1720s. It recreates an evening from 1726 when the Duchess of Marlborough, Sarah Churchill, hosted two of the most famous singers from the London stage, the alto castrato Senesino and the soprano Cuzzoni, for a private audience at her home. Performers are Randall Scotting (countertenor), Rowan Pierce (soprano), George Ross (cello) and Aidan Phillips (harpsichord). www.handelhouse.org | 7 | Booking line 020 7399 1953

Exhibition

Exhibition included in admission charge: £6.50, £5.50 concessions, £2 children (free on weekends) SHE WAS DESPISÉD: HANDEL AND SUSANNAH CIBBER Wednesday 26 February – Sunday 28 September 2014 To celebrate the tercentenary of her birth, Handel House Museum presents an exhibition on the life and work of Susannah Cibber.

From a promising start as a singer in a small opera company, Cibber’s career and social standing were fatally blighted by the scandalous trial in which her husband Theophilus accused her of adultery. Unable to appear on the London stage, she fled to Dublin. It was here that she was chosen by Handel to sing in the first performance of Messiah in 1742, giving a moving performance of the aria ‘He was despiséd’.

From her performance in the London premiere of Messiah a year later her career blossomed once again. She became one of the most significant actresses of the 18th century, and for many years was David Garrick’s leading lady.

The exhibition will tell Susannah’s fascinating, dramatic and moving life story, through exhibits, contemporary texts, music and a programme of related events.

EXHIBITION WALKING TOUR: SUSANNAH CIBBER’S LONDON Sunday 17 August, 11am-12.30pm See page 13 for details.

EXHIBITION TALKS AT 3PM Exhibition Talks are delivered by volunteers and are suitable for all levels of knowledge. Talks will last between 15-20 minutes and special exhibition Talks will take place the last Saturday of each month: 31 May, 28 June, 26 July, 30 August and 27 September.

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Hanover Rules!

300 years of the Hanoverian Succession

The coronation of King George I in 1714 was the beginning of an era that shaped the British Empire and nurtured a vibrant cultural exchange in the arts, science and politics.

King George I of Great Britain began his aristocratic life as Georg Ludwig, ruler of the Duchy Electorate of BrunswickLüneburg (Hanover) in the Holy Roman Empire. He ascended the English throne after the death of Queen Anne who had not produced an heir to the throne. More than fifty Roman Catholic relatives of Queen Anne had a stronger claim to the throne but the Act of Settlement of 1701 prevented a Catholic succession. Georg Ludwig was the closest Protestant relation to Anne and his succession was the birth of what we now call the ‘Georgian’ era.

George Frideric Handel, an employee of Georg Ludwig in Hanover, was already settled in London at the time. Well established in the British court Handel enjoyed his successes on the opera stage through Royal Patronage. Handel was also commissioned to write music for ceremonial and public events for Kings George I and George II which resulted in many musical masterpieces such as Water Music, Zadok the Priest, Music for the Royal Fireworks of which many were written at his home at 25 Brook Street.

Our concert season celebrates this important anniversary and Handel’s contribution to the Royal family.

Other museums, galleries and a music festival will also be marking this anniversary.

To find out more visit the German Embassy London website: www.london.diplo.de

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July 2014

Tickets: £9, £5 students unless otherwise stated

THE ROYAL FAVOURITE Thursday 3 July, 6.30-7.30pm This programme commemorates Handel as a composer of opera, chamber and solo works, and as a dedicated teacher to the daughters of George II, celebrating the popular appeal of his music during his lifetime. Performed by Yu-Wei Hu (baroque flute) and Jane Chapman (harpsichord).

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HANDEL HOUSE SINGERS PERFORM ZADOK THE PRIEST Saturday 5 July, 6-7pm Come and support the Handel House Singers who will perform Handel’s Zadok the Priest and other Coronation Anthems, to celebrate 300 years of the Hanoverian Succession. The choir will be accompanied by a baroque

HANDEL HOUSE SINGERS; COME AND SING ZADOK THE PRIEST Saturday 5 July, 10am-7pm As part of the tercentenary celebrations of the Hanoverian Succession, join Handel House Singers to work through Zadok the Priest, ending with a public performance. The day will be led and conducted by eminent harpsichordist and conductor Laurence Cummings. Laurence will coach each vocal section in the morning at Handel House and then invite the whole choir to join him and a baroque orchestra for a full rehearsal and performance at Hinde Street Methodist Church.

HANDEL HOUSE COACHING SECTIONS 10am: Sopranos 11am: Altos 12.15pm: Tenors and Basses REHEARSAL AND PERFORMANCE AT HINDE STREET METHODIST CHURCH 3pm: Rehearsal 5.15pm: Glass of wine for participants 6pm: Public performance Tickets: £15, £12 concessions.

Price includes a glass of wine for participants. www.handelhouse.org | 10 | Booking line 020 7399 1953

July 2014

Tickets: £9, £5 students unless otherwise stated

orchestra and conducted by Laurence Cummings, one of Britain’s most exciting and versatile exponents of historical performance.

Venue: Hinde Street Methodist Church, 19 Thayer Street, London, W1U 2QJ Tickets: £5. Tickets also available on the door.

BHS RECITAL: TRANSMUTATION THROUGH TRANSCRIPTION Tuesday 8 July, 6.30-7.30pm

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A SINFONY FOR A KING Thursday 17 July, 6.30-7.30pm A programme of sonatas written by royal musicians of the Georgian era. Ensemble Anciennes et modernes explore the King’s Musick with a dazzling sinfonia

by Handel, believed to have been composed shortly before he became Kappellmeister to Prince Georg in 1710. Music performed

by Maya Enokida, John Bowker (violins), Corrina Connor (cello), and Nathaniel Mander (harpsichord).

Harpsichordist and composer Satoko Doi-Luck explores works that were transcribed for solo harpsichord. The programme will include works by JS Bach, Forqueray, D’Anglebert and Geminiani.

THE BAROQUE GUITAR Thursday 24 July, 6.30-7.30pm

SEDUCTIVE SORCERY AMONGST HANDEL’S RAMPANT ROYALS Thursday 10 July, 6.30-7.30pm

RNIB COMPOSITION SUMMER SCHOOL SHOWCASE Thursday 31 July, 6.30-7.30pm

The queens and princesses portrayed in his operas were women of power.

The mystical queen Alcina, princess Deidamia of Scyros and Cleopatra all address Gods in their quests for power, love and happiness. Performers are Christina Raphaelle Haldane (soprano) and Carl Philippe Gionet (harpsichord).

This concert is the culmination of a four day Summer School for composers who are blind or partially sighted. In collaboration with the RNIB, the Handel House Composer-inResidence works closely with these talented young musicians to create new works influenced by both modern and baroque idioms. They will be performed by violin and cello duo Aisha Orazbayeva (violin) and Lucy Railton (cello).

Guitarist Benjamin Bruant performs works by Handel, Scarlatti and JS Bach all of whom were born in 1685. Together they represent the music of their generation.

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August 2014

Tickets: £9, £5 students unless otherwise stated

Booking line: 020 7399 1953

BOWING BEFORE THE KING Thursday 7 August, 6.30-7.30pm

DEDICATED TO THE KING Thursday 14 August, 6.30-7.30pm

Due Corde present a selection of sonatas by eminent 18th century violinists who collaborated with Handel during his career in London. The programme will include the first opus of Geminiani which he performed before the King in 1715 accompanied by Handel, and other contemporaries with links to the Royal household. Due Corde are Anne Marie Chrstensen (violin) and Amélie Addison (cello).

Arcata Baroque perform Italian cantatas for soprano and bass continuo by Ariosti, Bononcini, Handel. They will also explore contributions by other Royal favourites: composer Geminiani and Italian singer Margherita Durastanti and round off with Arne’s Celebrated Ode, in Honour of Great Britain. Arcata Baroque are Elin Harries (soprano), Carina Drury (cello) and Nathaniel Mander (harpsichord).

BHS RECITAL: MASTERWORKS OF THE CONTINENTAL REPERTOIRE Tuesday 12 August, 6.30-7.30pm Harpsichordist Aidan Phillips presents remarkable works by masters of the harpsichord, exploring the diversity and virtuosity of their repertoire. Featuring works by JS Bach, Couperin, Duphly, Handel, Rameau and Telemann, he will take you on a musical journey, ascending the heights of compositional technique and expression.

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August 2014

Tickets: £9, £5 students unless otherwise stated

Booking line: 020 7399 1953

EXHIBITION WALKING TOUR: SUSANNAH CIBBER’S LONDON Sunday 17 August, 11am-12.30pm Join Deputy Director Martin Wyatt on a walk through central London, visiting some of the key sites associated with the great actress and singer Susannah Cibber. The walk will start in Covent Garden and finish at Handel House, where you can visit the exhibition She Was Despiséd: Handel and Susannah Cibber to discover more about the life and times of this fascinating woman.

Tickets: £10 Further details will be sent along with your tickets.

SALON TO STAGE: HANDEL’S CHAMBER MUSIC AND ‘ROYAL’ ARIAS Thursday 21 August, 6.30-7.30pm Actus Musicus perform a programme of countertenor arias from Handel’s ‘Royal’ operas, showcasing the range and depth of Handel’s vocal writing, alongside two of his well-loved chamber works and a rarely heard trio sonata by his contemporary Michael Festing. Actus Musicus are Rory McCleery (countertenor), Julia Kuhn (violin), Isabel Meuser (violin), Emily Ashton (cello) and John McKean (harpsichord).

TELEMANN ROMANCES THE FRENCH Thursday 28 August, 6.30-7.30pm Telemann‘s Paris Quartets, written in the French style, gained him great popularity in Paris. Native Parisian composer Louis Gabriel Guillemain would no doubt have been inspired to write for this combination of instruments

by Telemann’s success. Performers are Laura Piras (baroque flute), Julia Kuhn (violin), Liam Byrne (viola da gamba) and Tom Foster (harpsichord).

FOLLOW US!

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Acis & Galatea: Back Where it Began Saturday 21 June 2014, 6pm

La Nuova Musica Conducted by Laurence Cummings Director Martin Parr Chorus of NLCS and Harrow School students Nearly 300 years after its first performance Handel House has organised for Acis and Galatea to be performed once more in the place where it was first written and seen. The gardens at Canons, now part of the North London Collegiate School, will form the setting for a drinks reception and picnic supper afterwards. The opera itself will be performed in the School’s theatre, alongside the gardens.

For a ticket application form, please contact Elizabeth Nicholson on enicholson@handelhouse.org or 020 7495 1685

Booking information FRIENDS BOOKING: Monday 17 March, 10am PUBLIC BOOKING: Monday 31 March, 10am Booking line 020 7399 1953 Please note • All event tickets include free museum admission unless otherwise stated.

• Handel House does not refund or exchange tickets.

• Admission to all Handel House events is for ticket holders only.

• As audience capacity is very limited, please book your tickets in advance.

• All events take place in the Rehearsal & Performance room at the Handel House Museum unless otherwise stated.

• All information is correct at time of going to press. Handel House Trust Ltd reserves the right to change artists and/or programmes without notice as necessary.

Tube: Bond Street/Oxford Circus Bus: Numerous buses to Oxford Street, Bond Street and Regent Street.

Tel: 020 7495 1685 Fax: 020 7495 1759 Email: mail@handelhouse.org Website: www.handelhouse.org Registered Charity No. 1006009

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Opening times Tuesday-Saturday 10am-6pm (8pm on Thursday), Sunday 12pm-6pm.

Last admission is 30 minutes before closing.

Closed on Mondays and Bank Holidays.

Entrance to the Museum is around the back of Brook Street in Lancashire Court.

Davies St

Access The museum has full access and facilities for disabled visitors. Please telephone before arrival so that we can best accommodate your needs. One carer per disabled visitor is admitted free of charge to the Museum.

For your own safety, you are advised to wear sensible shoes when visiting, as the museum contains original 18th century floors which can be uneven. Stilettos damage the original flooring and leather soled-shoes are particularly unsuitable. Please note that certain rooms have low lighting.

Handel House Museum 25 Brook Street, Mayfair London W1K 4HB

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Events at a glance | Booking line: 020 7399 1953 FRIENDS BOOKING: MONDAY 17 MARCH, 10AM PUBLIC BOOKING: MONDAY 31 MARCH, 10AM

May

Thursday 1 Sunday 4 Thursday 8 Tuesday 13 Thursday 15 Thursday 22 Saturday 24 Thursday 29 Saturday 31

The Royal Recorder Royal Music for a Family Occasion Music for the House of Hanover BHS Recital: Circé and the Peacock Ciaconna Heimweh in the House of Hanover: wind music for the homesick German BHS Weekend Recital: Johann Caspar Ferdinand Fischer Composer-in-Residence: Duets Exhibition Talk: She was Despiséd: Handel and Susannah Cibber

June

Join the m on H e-ne andel Ho thly w u on co sletter for se ncert upda s, e tes spec ial ev xhibitions e , n t s much a more nd !

Thursday 5 Handel and the Hanoverians Tuesday 10 BHS Recital: Old and New, Tried and True Thursday 12 Royal Handel Thursday 19 Duets for the Duchess Saturday 21 Acis and Galatea: Back Where it Began Thursday 26 Handel and the Burlington Circle Saturday 28 Exhibition Talk: She was Despiséd: Handel and Susannah Cibber

July

Thursday 3 Saturday 5 Tuesday 8 Thursday 10 Thursday 17 Thursday 24 Saturday 26 Thursday 31

August Thursday 7 Tuesday 12 Thursday 14 Sunday 17 Thursday 21 Thursday 28 Saturday 30

The Royal Favourite Handel House Singers: Come and Sing Zadok the Priest and Concert BHS Recital: Transmutation through Transcription Seductive Sorcery amongst Handel’s Rampant Royals A Sinfony for a King The Baroque Guitar Exhibition Talk: She was Despiséd: Handel and Susannah Cibber RNIB Composition Summer School showcase

Bowing before the King BHS Recital: Masterworks of the continental repertoire Dedicated to the King Exhibition Walking Tour: Susannah Cibber’s London Salon to Stage: Handel’s chamber music and ‘Royal’ arias Telemann Romances the French Exhibition Talk: She was Despiséd: Handel and Susannah Cibber

Front cover - King George I © The Handel House Trust Ltd